US STOCKS-S&P 500, Nasdaq rise as Apple nears $2 trillion in market cap

(For a live blog on the U.S. stock market, click LIVE/ or
type LIVE/ in a news window.)
* Weekly unemployment claims fall below 1 million
* S&P 500 about 0.3% below February record high
* Cisco weighs on Dow following weak outlook
* Indexes: Dow off 0.17%, S&P up 0.13%, Nasdaq rises 0.95%

(Updates comment, prices)
By Ambar Warrick and Medha Singh
Aug 13 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 and Nasdaq rose on Thursday,
with Apple inching toward $2 trillion in market capitalization,
as data showed jobless claims fell below one million last week
for the first time since the start of the pandemic in United
States.
While the S&P 500 remained within striking distance of a
record high, the blue-chip Dow was weighed down by a 11.4% slump
in Cisco Systems Inc CSCO.O after the company forecast
first-quarter revenue and profit below estimates. Apple Inc AAPL.O rose 2.2% as a report said the iPhone
maker was readying a series of subscription bundles for its
digital services. At its current share price of about $457, the
company is about $10 a share shy of hitting $2 trillion in
market capitalization. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits decreased to
963,000 for the week ended Aug. 8, the lowest level since
mid-March but the expiration of a $600 weekly jobless supplement
at the end of July likely contributed to the
decline. Data last week showed the economy has regained only 9.3
million jobs of the 22 million jobs lost between February and
April, indicating that it faces a long road to reach
pre-pandemic levels.
But Wall Street has recovered most of the trillions lost
during the start of the pandemic and the tech-heavy Nasdaq
.IXIC was the first of the three major indexes to hit a record
high in June. The Dow is about 5.6% below its February peak.
"Our take on a new high, if it happens, is that it's another
reminder to investors how disconnected the stock market and the
economy have been this year. The stocks have soared but economy
– it's improved, yes – but a million initial claims is still not
good," said Ryan Detrick, senior market strategist at LPL
Financial in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Meanwhile, markets continued to hold on to hopes the
Democrats and the White House would reach an agreement for a
stimulus to help the economy recover. Unemployment benefits have
been a sticking point in their talks.
"There's definitely a stalemate there and it just seems like
the market has decided to take an optimistic view around the
stimulus talks that's right in line with how markets are looking
at every outcome - the economic recovery, earnings recovery,
vaccines," said Dan Eye, head of asset allocation and equity at
Fort Pitt Capital Group in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
The U.S. Presidential election is also expected to add
another layer of uncertainty into markets, with roughly 12 weeks
remaining until Election Day.
At 11:09 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI
was down 46.98 points, or 0.17%, at 27,929.86, the S&P 500
.SPX was up 4.48 points, or 0.13%, at 3,384.83. The Nasdaq
Composite .IXIC was up 104.57 points, or 0.95%, at 11,116.81.
Consumer discretionary .SPLRCD , technology .SPLRCT and
communication services .SPLRCL were the few gainers among
major S&P sectors.
AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc AMC.N jumped 14.4% after
the firm said it will start its first phase of reopening
theaters in the United States from Aug. 20, covering more than
100 venues. Tapestry Inc TPR.N fell 2.8% even as it beat quarterly
sales estimates. Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 1.10-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and for a 1.03-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded seven new 52-week highs and no new
low, while the Nasdaq recorded 38 new highs and 14 new lows.